Utapao From Thailand, joined Jul 2005, 637 posts, RR: 11 Reply 1, posted (3 years 2 days 21 hours ago) and read 1310 times:
Agree that the price itself is quite high, but the idea of "x-factors" is becoming more and more common.
Want a pre-reserved seat? $X
Want an aisle or window? $X more
Want a discounted coupon on on-board food purchase? $X
Want access to the IFE? $X
Check bags? $X
Soon:
Seatbelt? $X
Seat back? $X
Key to overhead? $X
Key to lav? $X
One North American carrier has looked at offering on their website and has struggled with the GDS's because they are not set up today to handle such x-factors. Almost every carrier I have dealt with has at least considered such things. But most I've heard were looking at $10-20 for a PRS, not 30GBP.
PanAm747 From United States, joined Feb 2004, 4242 posts, RR: 11 Reply 2, posted (3 years 2 days 20 hours ago) and read 1285 times:
You will find here in the United States that Allegiant Air does the same thing.
My uncle lives about 20 miles from Duluth, Minnesota. When flying out for my father's funeral (his brother), he and his wife had a choice - drive 100 miles to MSP and pay to park, or fly Allegiant and pay extra for an assigned seat.
When it came down to it, the extra charge wasn't so bad.
I don't approve, but this may be the wave of the future.
Pan Am:The World's Most Experienced Airline - P(oor) S(ailor's) A(irline): San Diego's Hometown Airline-Catch Our Smile!
Cwldude From United Kingdom (Wales), joined May 2006, 691 posts, RR: 2 Reply 5, posted (3 years 2 days 12 hours ago) and read 1117 times:
Yes as said, you're likely to have not paid much for the flight in the first place. £30 isn't that bad, considering you're automatically paying the £10 to pre-book your seats, so it's really only £20??
Thomson Airways - The UKs premier charter airline // now flown : BY -AA -AJ -AE -AT; OO -AX -AU -RA -BG; BRIG; OBYD
TCXDegsy From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2006, 407 posts, RR: 2 Reply 6, posted (3 years 2 days 12 hours ago) and read 1100 times:
Whether you like it or not, it's the same with the other UK Charters.
Lets face it, UK Tour Operators only make approx 4% margin, and so need their airlines to make a profit in their own right. In the World's Airline Economics, that aint easy, so they have to look at ways of generating profitable passenger revenue.
Incidentally, TCX's contribution to Thomas Cook UK's overall £87m Profit for 2004/5 was a respectable £30m I believe.
Not bad for an airline with a fleet of 24 aircraft!
Lincoln From United States, joined Nov 2004, 3744 posts, RR: 15 Reply 7, posted (3 years 2 days 11 hours ago) and read 1093 times:
Quoting Utapao (Reply 1): One North American carrier has looked
Northwest does it for "preferred seats" (select asiles and exit rows, albeit only via their website, not through any of the GDSes) with "Choach Choice" seating)
It's also my understanding that Airtran has a "Seat assigned at check-in" fare and a "Choose your seat now" fare, effectively accomplishing the same thing.
Lincoln
CO Is My Airline of Choice || Baggage Claim is an airline's last chance to disappoint a customer || Next flts in profile
SSTsomeday From Canada, joined Oct 2006, 922 posts, RR: 1 Reply 8, posted (3 years 2 days 11 hours ago) and read 1066 times:
Quoting Vasu (Thread starter): Is it just me that thinks this is rediculous...?
In this regard my sense is that they are really trying to DISCOURAGE anyone from asking for advance seat selection so they don't have to deal with it (Cheaper for them? Loading planes is faster? Less personnel on their phone lines?), seeing as the price is so exorbitant.
In GENERAL, I find it offensive that airlines take away services and then offer them back, but for a price.
Reducing the maximum allowance for free baggage,
charging for meals,
charging for changing a same day flight on the same itinerary,
charging for seat selection (which is particularly low),
charging for headsets,
charging to reinstate frequent flyer miles,
or to change F/F bookings,
charging to make a reservation over the phone,
charging taxes and booking fees on f/f reservations,
reducing availability of frequent flyer seats and then offering to break their artificially imposed lack of availability by requiring double miles.
All of this has happened since deregulation.
I show up for a flight and feel as if I am being held hostage while they feed on my wallet, and I am wondering what other way (I could not anticipate) that they have nevertheless thought of to charge additional non-ticket revenue.
It makes flying stressful and disappointing. I think it's also counter-productive to the airlines because it completely kills customer loyalty. The airlines are turning us all into bottom-feeders, searching for the lowest price. It's THEIR fault.
Recently on the Air Canada website I made a reservation and paid for it (non-refindable), wondering when I would get the page that offered me seat selection. Only after I had confirmed and paid for the non-refundable ticket was I THEN shown a screen that offered seat selection for $15 per leg! It was a great swindle. How dare they?!
Tango-Bravo From United States, joined Jun 2001, 3328 posts, RR: 37 Reply 9, posted (3 years 1 day 9 hours ago) and read 943 times:
Quoting Vasu (Thread starter): Is it just me that thinks this is rediculous...?
The amount to be charged by Thomas Cook Airlines for pre-assigned seating, if correct, is excessive IMHO. On the other hand, the concept of charging a fee for pre-assigned seating, especially for pax traveling on discounted fares, is an idea long overdue inasmuch as it will get pax to "put up or shut up" on the issue of pre-assigned seating. Those who seem to make where they sit a life-or-death issue should be happy to "put up" (the money) for a seat their very life practically depends on (if their blather were to be taken seriously) while those of the same mind who choose not to "put up" will be "shut up" by their choice to not pay a reasonable fee to resolve what, to them, is apparently a life-or-death issue.
Tango-Bravo From United States, joined Jun 2001, 3328 posts, RR: 37 Reply 10, posted (3 years 13 hours ago) and read 852 times:
Quoting SSTsomeday (Reply 8): All of this has happened since deregulation.
More correctly, this has happened because of deregulation and the "you can have your cheap fares and all the perks too" unrealistic expectations airlines have been given the freedom to create.
Quoting SSTsomeday (Reply 8): In GENERAL, I find it offensive that airlines take away services and then offer them back, but for a price.
And I find the services you list to be very expensive for airlines to provide. Not the least of the expense of providing these services is the cost of handling the never-ending inundation of calls to airlines from customers whose underlying reasons for calling boil down to "how can I get something for nothing on my cheap fare (or free award ticket) booked on your airline?" Lest anyone doubt my word, a few hours listening to calls I handle every day on the job would be a most potent cure your skepticism. Airline marketing departments are masters of bait-and-switch which inevitably results in the consistent overpromising and underdelivering which, to me, seems to be the underlying point made by SSTsomeday, whether wittingly or unwittingly.
SSTsomeday From Canada, joined Oct 2006, 922 posts, RR: 1 Reply 11, posted (2 years 12 months 2 days 15 hours ago) and read 759 times:
Quoting Tango-Bravo (Reply 10): Airline marketing departments are masters of bait-and-switch which inevitably results in the consistent overpromising and underdelivering which, to me, seems to be the underlying point made by SSTsomeday, whether wittingly or unwittingly.
Yes, that is true.
But what I basically lament is the horrible lack of service since complete deregulation, since it has caused airlines to compete so desperately and ruthlessly. Also many thousands of airline careers have been ruined, peoples pensions lost. I feel terrible for all those people with careers in aviation. It is no longer a service-orientated industry. There is nothing classy or special about it anymore, on the contrary, it is a hardship to fly somewhere. I believe airlines have acted somewhat hysterically because if the fuel price hike (which is correcting somewhat) and the temporary turndown in traffic post 9/11, and so now they have completely lost airline-specific customer loyalty, which hurts them even more. They have also eroded frequent flyer program quality to the same end.
Before deregulation, I was able to get advance purchase fares which were cheaper than what I pay now, and the service was much better.
Deregulation has not improved my personal flying experience. I wonder if a form of partial deregulation could bring some semblance of service back?
There may be no solution to the present lack of service and the clandestine, non-ticket revenue that airlines come up with. That doesn't mean I have to like it, or that service hasn't deteriorated. For the time being, aside from the fact that I am an enthusiast. the customer experience for the most part is a severe disappointment (for those of us seated in the back). Flying used to be fun, but is now something to be endured, and I can't help thinking it didn't have to turn out this way...
TCXDegsy From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2006, 407 posts, RR: 2 Reply 12, posted (2 years 12 months 2 days 13 hours ago) and read 720 times:
Quoting SSTsomeday (Reply 11): Before deregulation, I was able to get advance purchase fares which were cheaper than what I pay now, and the service was much better.
Deregulation has not improved my personal flying experience. I wonder if a form of partial deregulation could bring some semblance of service back?
Fuel rises, inflation and Chapter 11 will have driven this, not deregulation in it's own right. Services have suffered, only because the industry has taken such a battering it's had to strip back on luxuries it used to offer for free (well, in North America anyway... European airlines still provide free alcohol!!)
Remember what the thread started off about - charging for extra services on a UK charter airline - deregulation in the US has nothing to do with that.
CRJ900 From Norway, joined Jun 2004, 1653 posts, RR: 2 Reply 13, posted (2 years 12 months 2 days 3 hours ago) and read 659 times:
With FR and EZY and all those selling dirt cheap tickets, while charging for everything like check-in, bags, pre-reserved seating, preboarding etc etc, TCX perhaps feel they have to do the same to keep up with the competition, even if they serve different market segments...?
FR's ultimate goal is to offer the fare itself for free, but charge for everything else, IIRC, so many airlines may have to follow suit.
Drgmobile From Canada, joined Aug 2006, 387 posts, RR: 0 Reply 14, posted (2 years 12 months 1 day 18 hours ago) and read 571 times:
So, for a long haul flight, Thomas Cook Airlines (UK) will charge you £30 (!!!) per adult to pre-book your seats?
So for a family of four with two older kids, you'd have to pay £120 to pre-book your seat numbers... something most scheduled airlines offer for free!
Actually this is becoming quite common. Judging by the emotion to which you assign being able to select a seat, it seems to be fairly important (ie important enough that there is a market of folks willing to pay extra for it).
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